If you're feeling Psychosocial, check out the Duality between Slipknot's
iconic masks and the musicians under them. Don't get Left Behind!
More than 25 years after the band's debut,
the only original member left in Slipknot is percussionist Shawn "Clown" Crahan. Crahan was
one of the founders of the band in 1995, recruiting the other members to join him.
In addition to being a percussionist, Crahan also provides backing vocals on several tracks.
He is known for eccentric onstage performances, which involve him hitting trash cans like drums,
and he has also hurt himself a few times while going all-out during a show. Apparently,
he used to sniff the corpse of a crow before shows to get his adrenaline pumping.
However, Clown is far from your typical metalhead, admitting in a 2022 interview with The Independent
that he has a soft spot for the music stylings of one Ariana Grande. In 2019, Crahan experienced a
great personal tragedy when his 22-year-old daughter Gabrielle died. In addition,
he also stated in the interview that the deaths of former bandmates Joey Jordison and Paul Gray were
tough on him, calling it "pretty heavy" to be the last surviving original member of the band. The
creepy smile on Clown's signature mask hides a man with a kind heart and a sensitive side.
"I came up with wearing the masks because, um, I didn't want people to see my real pain."
He may be known for being somewhat of a recluse and not saying much, but Craig "133" Jones is one
of the longest-tenured members in Slipknot. Jones originally joined as a guitar player,
but he is also largely known for his sampling and keyboard work. Jones has
appeared on every single Slipknot album since their 1996 debut, "Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat."
Of all the masks in Slipknot, Jones' might be the most recognizable. Though
it has gone through variations and changes, Jones wears a gimp mask
covered in spikes. It's definitely one of the more intimidating masks in the band,
as those spikes look like they could do some serious damage if they get too close.
Jones is notorious for not talking in interviews, and bandmate Corey Taylor
relayed during a Q&A session with fans that it's not an act — he's like that with the band,
too. Taylor claimed he went two years without having a full conversation with Jones,
which is pretty incredible considering they were playing together almost daily at times. Still, you
can tell that Jones is beloved by his bandmates, even if he is the strong and silent type.
One half of the electric guitar duo that powers Slipknot, Mick Thomson has been in the band
since 1996. He's known for his virtuoso guitar playing that includes both rhythm and solo work,
as well as his affinity for Jackson and ESP brand guitars. He's also one of the most physically
imposing members of the band, usually dwarfing the smaller members in photoshoots and onstage.
Along with fellow guitarist Jim Root, Thomson writes all of his own guitar parts. According
to an interview they gave in Guitar World, they don't typically do a lot of planning
before getting into the studio, preferring to make things as organic and fresh as possible.
Thomson's mask design has stayed relatively stable during his tenure in the band,
but it has changed up slightly. Usually, the mask resembles a cross between an old-school hockey
mask and a gimp mask, with his eyes shooting out from the cutouts like laser beams into the soul.
In 2015, Thomson was charged with disorderly conduct following a violent
altercation with his brother — but he's still shredding with Slipknot to this day.
Of all the members of Slipknot, Corey Taylor has by far had the most success outside of
the band. He has been the lead singer of Slipknot since 1997, and has appeared on
every album since their self-titled release in 1999. His stage antics are widely known:
he's definitely one of the band's more interactive performers, constantly getting
the crowd involved in their performances. In addition to his work with Slipknot, Taylor is
the lead singer for the band Stone Sour, which also features Slipknot guitar player Jim Root.
Of all the masks in Slipknot, Taylor's has probably evolved the most. It started off with
fake dreadlocks sewn into a largely gray mask that wrapped around his head — but eventually,
he dropped the dreadlocks and made the switch to face-only masks. During an interview with
Kerrang!, Taylor commented that the mask he unveiled in 2019 was purposefully designed to make
fans uncomfortable, and that he wanted it to look less professionally designed and more authentic.
"There's gotta be an easier way. Look — haven't aged a day!"
Outside of his life in music, Taylor is also a New York Times bestselling
author. He has released several books and has authored comic books and graphic novels.
Besides Corey Taylor, Sid Wilson — the man behind the turntables
and keyboards — might just be the most recognizable Slipknot member
to the average fan. This is mainly due to his relationship with Kelly Osbourne,
the daughter of metal god Ozzy Osbourne. They met all the way back in 1999, when Slipknot was
just finding their footing. It's unclear when they started dating, but they revealed their
relationship in early 2022. They welcomed their first child later that year, a boy named Sidney.
Wilson's mask has undergone many changes throughout the years,
starting out as mainly a gas mask before morphing into various skulls.
He has also experimented with masks that look like the Transformers,
as he is a big fan of the series. In addition to playing in Slipknot, Wilson has a solo career
under the moniker DJ Starscream — a name that pays homage to his beloved robots in disguise.
Wilson joined the band prior to the release of their self-titled album,
and has been with them ever since. During an interview with Revolver,
Wilson revealed that in order to make an impression on Clown, he head-butted him
repeatedly at an early concert. That convinced Clown to make him a member of the band.
If you play guitar and listen to rock or metal music, you've most likely heard of
Slipknot guitar player Jim Root. In addition to his appearances on every Slipknot album since
their self-titled release in 1999, Root has also appeared on albums for the band
Mindless Self Indulgence, the artist John 5, and Sid Wilson's solo project DJ Starscream.
He was also one of the main guitarists in the band Stone Sour, which he played in
with Slipknot vocalist Corey Taylor. Like fellow Slipknot guitarist Mick Thomson,
Root is known for his incredible ability to play both rhythm and lead styles effectively.
According to an interview Root gave with Guitar World, he is one of the primary songwriters in
Slipknot and is always looking for ways to evolve their sound. During the interview,
Root also revealed that he was the main reason that bass player Alessandro Venturella joined
the band following the death of longtime bassist Paul Gray in 2010.
Root is known for having one of the more stable mask designs in the band.
They usually feature an array of zippers and a jester's face, often with large sockets for
his eyes. Some of his masks have almost channeled a Phantom of the Opera vibe,
while others, like his "Iowa"-era look, are just downright sinister.
Chris Fehn was a percussionist and backing vocalist in Slipknot from 1998 until his
departure in 2019 under acrimonious circumstances. Before his dismissal, Fehn had appeared on every
Slipknot album from the 1999 self-titled to 2017's live album "Day of the Gusano."
According to an interview Fehn gave in 2008, his first years in the band were full of hazing,
and it was hard for him to fit in. They refused to let him record on the albums and did not
give him a stage number like everyone else for what he felt was a long time.
"To understand Slipknot back then is really difficult because it's such,
it's like such mental abuse, you know?"
In March 2019, Fehn filed a lawsuit against the band and members Shawn Crahan and Corey
Taylor over breach of fiduciary duty, breach of implied contract, and unjust enrichment.
Fehn alleged that Crahan and Taylor had gone behind his back and created multiple companies
and LLCs that sold Slipknot merchandise — and he claimed they did so in order to get out
of compensating him. A year and a half later, in September 2020, the lawsuit was sent to
mediation before it was withdrawn that November. It's unknown if a settlement was ever reached.
Fehn's masks have always been distinctive for their long, Pinocchio-esque noses and
zipper mouths, which add a nuanced layer of psychotic horror to his persona.
When Slipknot's original bass player Paul Gray died in 2010, the band was absolutely devastated.
Fans wondered how the group would ever be able to continue, considering how Gray was such an
integral and recognizable piece to their puzzle. Four years later, in 2014, Slipknot finally hired
his replacement: Englishman Alessandro Venturella. As he relayed in a 2019 interview with Musicradar,
the reason he got the job was in part due to longtime guitarist Jim Root. Root and Venturella
were friends, and Venturella was working as a guitar tech for Brent Hinds of Mastodon.
One night while on tour in Atlanta, Root called Venturella — a guitarist by trade — and asked
if he could set the band up with any bass players to audition. Venturella volunteered,
learning to play bass on the fly just before the audition. In another interview Venturella
gave in 2023 with Heavy Interviews, he talked about how at first the band wanted to keep
his identity a secret. However, after a few promo shots captured his distinctive tattoos,
the word quickly got out, and everyone knew Venturella was the new bass player.
Having not been in Slipknot nearly as long as most other members, Venturella's mask has not had the
chance to evolve nearly as much. His first mask looked a bit like a cross between Michael Myers
and Scarecrow from "Batman," and it has slowly morphed into looking like it consists of only
his face muscles, stripped of skin — definitely one of the more frightening masks in the group.
For most people, their first jobs out of college are usually something
temporary and ephemeral — quick stops on their way to their larger career. Well,
most people aren't Jay Weinberg. Upon graduating from the Stevens Institute of Technology in
2013 — with a business degree, no less — one of Weinberg's first jobs was to start playing
drums in Slipknot. Their longtime drummer Joey Jordison had just departed the band,
so Weinberg immediately stepped in. Weinberg wasn't just any college kid, though — he was
already a seasoned veteran, having previously toured with bands like Against Me! He also comes
from drumming royalty — his father, Max Weinberg, played drums in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band.
"He's taken my drumming, you know, whatever beats I play,
and just gone so far beyond me, it's ridiculous."
Weinberg first appeared on Slipknot's 2014 release ".5: The Gray Chapter," and has
played on all releases since. According to an interview he gave with Metal Injection in 2016,
he was actually still in school finishing up his final tests when he got the call to potentially
join Slipknot. Needless to say, he jumped at the opportunity. He had been a fan of the band
since he was a teenager, and ended up being a big part of the writing process for their 2014 album.
Like fellow newcomer Alessandro Venturella, Weinberg's mask hasn't had as much time to
grow. At first, they featured a zipper mouth and pentagram on the forehead,
before slowly morphing into an all-white face with a mouth sewn shut. He's also worn special
masks for special occasions, like the black and white one he commissioned for Knotfest Japan.
Slipknot welcomed their newest member in 2019: percussionist Michael Pfaff.
He's lovingly known as the "Tortilla Man," due to the interesting nature of his mask.
Pfaff's story is a little different from the other newcomers in Slipknot,
as the band was actually able to hide his identity for a few years. Where
they failed with Alessandro Venturella and Jay Weinberg, they succeeded with Pfaff,
and his identity was not revealed until 2022. That year, Pfaff took part in a Reddit Ask Me
Anything Q&A, where he revealed his secret identity for the first time.
Previously, internet sleuths had fingered Pfaff as the Tortilla Man,
but no one could definitively say so until he revealed himself for the
Reddit AMA. Although he joined in 2019, Pfaff is apparently still new enough
that security doesn't always recognize him — even when he's in full attire.
Pfaff's mask features sinister vertical eye-slits
and a disturbing zipper mouth. Who knew Mexican food could be so scary?
When Paul Gray passed away in 2010, a huge hole opened up in Slipknot. Gray had been one of the
founding members and the group's bass player since 1995, appearing on every single Slipknot
album up until his death. He was one of the most beloved members of the band, and his loss severely
impacted them — especially lead vocalist Corey Taylor, who eventually got a tattoo of Gray in
remembrance during a very emotional episode of "New York Ink." Gray's death was the result of
a long struggle with substance abuse, which culminated in a tragic and fatal overdose.
"Yesterday, we lost our brother. And the world seems a little smaller because of it."
Seen by many as the heart and soul of the band, Gray's masks went through some major
changes during his time in Slipknot. First, it was a pig-face mask strapped to his head,
which he eventually turned black. He later modified it to resemble the infamous Hannibal
Lecter mask, and he looked truly deranged and possessed behind it.
For many young metal fans, the reason they started listening to Slipknot was due in no
small part to original drummer Joey Jordison. Widely known for his virtuoso drumming,
Slipknot concerts would often feature drum solos with Jordison playing alone
on his kit as it spun and flipped all over the stage. Along with Shawn Crahan and Paul Gray,
Jordison was one of the original founding members of Slipknot — and he played on every album from
1996's "Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat." through 2008's "All Hope Is Gone," departing the band in 2013.
Though at first all that was said about him leaving the band is that it was for "personal
reasons," he later announced that he had been diagnosed with transverse myelitis,
a neurological condition that compromised his ability to drum effectively with his legs. After
recovering, Jordison continued to play in a number of bands, including Scar the Martyr,
Murderdolls, and Vimic. Tragically, Jordison died on July 26, 2021, at the age of 46.
Jordison's mask remained relatively consistent during his time in Slipknot. It usually featured
a lighter base with black paint, and his final look adopted a crown of thorns to
adorn his horrific mask. It was… unsettling, to say the least — just the way he liked it.